The Packers and Falcons will meet for the 37th time in the regular season tomorrow night. While not exactly a storied rivalry, these two teams have certainly had a few interesting matchups, and they’ve produced a few great performances for the Packers as well.
Here are the highlights, including one game from all the way back in 1970.
Passing yards – 396 (Aaron Rodgers, 2011)
En route to his first MVP, Aaron Rodgers sliced and diced the Atlanta Falcons’ secondary in 2011, following up his one-man destruction
of the Georgia Dome in the playoffs the previous year. His 396 yards included 140 just to James Jones, who went 70 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Packers’ the lead for the first time in what would become a 25-14 win.
Rushing yards – 155 (Ahman Green, 2002)
In some grim foreshadowing, the Packers had trouble with Michael Vick at Lambeau Field to open up the 2002 season. The Falcons, however, had even more trouble with Ahman Green, who carried 27 times for 155 yards to help the Packers to a 37-34 overtime victory. Green also added 42 yards on six catches.
Samkon Gado gets an honorable mention here, too. He rushed for 103 yards and two touchdowns in Atlanta in 2005, but we’ll have more from him later on.
A second honorable mention goes to Donny Anderson, the only player in Packers history to surpass the 100-yard mark against the Falcons twice: once in 1968 and once in 1969.
Receiving yards – 186 (Carroll Dale, 1970)
I’d have guessed the top yardage game would have come from either James Jones in the aforementioned 2011 game or from Jordy Nelson circa 2014, but Carroll Dale had both of them beat before Jones or Nelson was even born.
In 1970, Dale caught four passes for 186 yards and two touchdowns, including an 89-yard strike from Don Horn that put the Packers ahead for good. Horn’s pass traveled an impressive 56 yards in the air, which would have been the longest completion by air yards in the NFL in 2025.
Points – 18 (Two tied)
I told you we’d mention Samkon Gado again. Well, here we are.
Dr. Gado is one of two Packers to score three touchdowns in a game against the Falcons, doing so in the aforementioned 2005 game. In that game, he rushed for two touchdowns and added a third through the air to cap off a four catch, five yard, one touchdown receiving performance.
The other Packers player to hit a touchdown triumvirate against the Falcons is Robert Tonyan. Big Bob put three across against the Falcons in 2020 as a part of a dominant Packers win.
Sacks – 4 (Tim Harris, 1989)
Squaring off against the Falcons at Milwaukee County Stadium, the Packers got a serious boost from Tim Harris via his four sacks. One came on the Falcons’ final drive, which helped preserve the Packers’ 23-21 victory.
Also noteworthy, Za’Darius Smith recorded three sacks against the Falcons in the Packers’ 2020 win at Lambeau Field. Now a member of the Falcons, you have to think Smith has a pretty good shot at hitting that number again, especially if he’s working against Anthony Belton.
Tackles – 11 (Blake Martinez, 2018)
A week after firing Mike McCarthy, the Packers got their first of two wins in the short-lived Joe Philbin era with a 34-20 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. Blake Martinez led the defensive effort, recording 11 solo tackles as the Packers shut down the Falcons.
Interceptions – 2 (Three players tied)
Counting playoff games, three different players have recorded two interceptions in a game against the Falcons.
Herb Adderley did it first, picking off the Falcons twice in 1968.
Mark Murphy (no, not that one) did it next, also grabbing two interceptions during a 1988 shutout loss in Atlanta.
And finally, Tramon Williams did it best. His leaping interception late in the second quarterof the Packers’ 2010 Divisional Round victory over the Falcons set up what would become the go-ahead drive for the Packers. The Packers scored so quickly that they left time on the clock for the Falcons to try to rally. They tried…and they got burned.
